November 27, 2012Comments Off on Episode CLXII: U & Me Make Wii (Part One)
It’s the launch of a new system, and what better way to jump on it than have some bad-ass guests on the show!
King Baby Duck and Blueonic are joined by Issues Guy, J.C. Riley, The DCD, and HipHopGamer as they show their thoughts on the new Wii U system from Nintendo. The surprising lack of lines, Miiverse, the unneeded slack the Big N got for their updates, and where Nintendo stands against the sure-to-be-announced soon next consoles from Microsoft and Sony!
September 18, 2012Comments Off on Episode CLIV: Wii U! Wii U! Here Come The Boom-Boom-Boom!
It’s a full-on Wii U coverage episode of B3, and the King invites a few friends in on the festivities!
This week King Baby Duck talks about the major screw-up he made about a program he did with Blueonic, but all turns to smiles when Issues Guy and JC Sergeant get pumped about the latest news about Nintendo’s newest system. Hear their thoughts on the launch titles, the hardware, and what they’d like to see happening on the Wii U.
June 12, 2012Comments Off on Episode CXLIII: The E3 Texas Hold ‘Em
The King returns from LA…
This week the B3 crew gather around for another edition of “Guess Who Died This Week?” and Chapter 63 of the MBTA “Oh, For Fuck’s Sake!” KBD shares his thoughts and favorites about this year’s E3, Anvil gives his weekly sports report, and another discussion about the movie Goon is raised.
June 5, 2012Comments Off on Microsoft’s E3 ’12 Briefing: The Good, The Bad, And The Wha?
Today Microsoft unveiled many games, projects, apps, and various other paraphernalia at their E3 briefing. While there was much pomp and circumstance to be had for what was next for the Xbox 360, there were some moments in the presentation that just seemed kinda on the “meh” side of things. Here now are just some of the highlights, the lowlights, and the shoulder shrugs of the Microsoft show.
THE GOOD:
Halo 4 – Many a Microsoft fanboy have been waiting patiently for the next adventure of Master Chief, and its trailer (mixing both some impressive live-action footage with in-game moments) had many people salivating. The forest and creatures you will be gunning down — not to mention the scary skeleton-faced robot — all seemed like it was brought to a whole new level of detail not seen on Xbox currently. As soon as the trailer ended, with Master Chief surrounded by these freaks of nature, not a single person in the audience held in their excitement.
Splinter Cell: Blacklist – At first glance I wasn’t sure which game it was, until Sam Fischer’s trademark attacks came full force after bringing in an injured insurgent. The shooting, the climbing, and even the tactics shown off in this demonstration showcased what Ubisoft Toronto is capable of when it comes to bringing something new to this beloved franchise. The voice recognition used via Kinect also looked interesting, and it also brought a bit of a laugh when it came to getting a terrorist’s attention.
Tomb Raider – How reboots should be done. This action-packed demo had Lara Croft shooting fiery arrows at enemies, stabbing them in the throats with knives, unleashing painful traps, rolling through the rapids, and swerving through trees on your parachute. Don’t be surprised if this new Tomb Raider gets slapped with an M-rating, though, as the blood and gore factor has been jacked up for this release.
South Park: The Stick Of Truth – Tears of laughter rolled through the aisles as the video preview showcased how a proper cartoon-based video game should be made. You create your own character, and travel through the Colorado town battling underpants gnomes, Woodland Critters, crab people, and other creatures familiar to the South Park world, all with the show’s trademark and often controversial humor. Creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone stole the show with their appearance, poking good fun of the briefing itself and expressing how amazed they were by Obsidian’s work on making the game look exactly like the TV show.
THE BAD:
Gears of War: Judgement – For some reason what should’ve been a fireworks display for this popular series instead turned out to be nothing more than one of those dumb little sparklers that you give to kids. The trailer just didn’t seem to do much justice for what Epic Games wanted to show off, especially when it came to Baird’s reveal. Perhaps we can blame this one on the lack of preparation. And seriously, does everyone need to use that A Perfect Circle track?!
Not enough emphasis on games – Throughout the 90-minute presentation, it felt like less than half of it was focused on what people came to E3 for: video games. Sure these apps and devices like Nike+ and SmartGlass seem cool, but to be honest most of us didn’t come here to see how we can watch TV in a different way; we want to see a unique way to play our titles.
Xbox Music – We already have too many music programs, from iTunes and Spotify to Pandora and various radio station apps. We don’t need another one, Microsoft!
Xbox lacks a big newcomer – It’s great seeing many of our favorite game heroes and anti-heroes alike making their return to grace, but there wasn’t a brand-spanking new title that was showcased that had us on our feet clamoring for it. Yes, it was cool seeing Twisted Pixel’s LocoCycle and Matter (a new game from Gore Verbinski), but I was really looking forward to maybe seeing one new title with a new character that would have people turning their heads.
THE WHA?:
Fable: The Journey – We’ve only heard snippets about this Kinect title, but the trailer showed today brought more questions than they did answer. Is it a first-person experience? Can we conjure up different powers depending on class? Do you maneuver through it like in Rise of Nightmares or is it in a rail-shooter style? Here’s hoping the convention itself will bring us everything we need to know about Lionhead Studio’s latest. Hey, at least it looks better than Fable Heroes.
Forza Horizon – Yes, the game looks impressive, but we’ve already got too many racing games out there. And didn’t we just get Forza 4 a few months back? Give us racing fans a bit of breathing room, not to mention a chance for our wallets to get a tad bigger, before dropping another game like this.
Usher’s impromptu concert – I’ll admit this was cool, but are we expected to believe that we are going to be able to dance like Usher in Dance Central 3, flips and all? Great presentation, but it probably won’t convince gamers who have cast dancing games to the side for some real hardcore gaming.
The “acting” on stage by presenters – I was going to put this one under “The Bad,” but I honestly found it funny how some of the people on stage couldn’t fake excitement to save their lives. Their hearts were in it, for sure, but you can obviously tell they were reading from the teleprompter behind the floor audience. Practice makes perfect, Microsoft. Do yourselves a favor and throw in a couple more dress rehearsals for good measure next year.
What about you? Share your thoughts on the presentation below! What made your jaw drop from either excitement or yawning?
June 4, 2012Comments Off on Is Resident Evil 6 doomed to repeat Resident Evil 5?
Survival horror might have something to fear… The Microsoft Media Briefing has left questions lingering in the air; the most poignant being “Whaaaat?” One of the things we saw at this pre E3 event was some gameplay of Capcom’s eagerly anticipated Resident Evil 6. Many are aware Capcom’s Resident Evil 5 had very mixed reviews […]
July 18, 2011Comments Off on Episode 254: I’m Hangry, and I’m NinJaSistah
OH HAI Monday! Are you hankering for a new ESH Podcast episode? Well we’ve got just the thing to feed your hungering soul: A brand new episode of our weekly podcast!
In this week’s episode the ladies talk all things video game and video game industry. Starting with the recent ruling protecting developer’s rights to include violence in video games to the much rumored case being made against gameplay video postings on social networks as copyright infringement.
We follow that up with more of Panda’s hands on experience with Catherine including the demo currently available on Xbox Live and the Playstation Network systems.
Then it’s on to a new segment: The Week in Geek. This week it’s all streaming media, from NetFlix’s new service plan structure to the music streaming (and potential Pandora killer) Spotify coming to the us.
June 14, 2011Comments Off on Episode XCVIII: The E3 Hangover
Still groggy from LA the King returns with Anvil and Mr. Cuse by his side.
This week King Baby Duck reveals his top ten picks from this year’s E3 Expo, and Anvil shares his thoughts on the debut performance from Contemporarily Out of Order. The trio look at the film The Hangover Part Two, Mr. Cuse reviews Water For Elephants and Midnight In Paris and Anvil & KBD give their reasons why X-Men: First Class might be the best prequel ever made. Plus Anvil quickly looks at Just Go With It and River of Darkness, and throws a plug in for the folks at Cage Titans Fighting Championship.
June 6, 2011Comments Off on E3 2011 News – Microsoft Media Briefing
Catch the archive of my live-tweeting of the 2011 Microsoft E3 Media Briefing. (more photos and final thoughts to follow, so be on the look out for an update.)
June 2, 2011Comments Off on E3 2011: Expect The Unexpected!
The Electronic Entertainment Expo is a whole different ballgame compared to PAX East. This is where the Big Three (Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft) showcase their next lead hitters, along with developers showing off what they have under their sleeves for the next year. What can be anticipated at this year’s E3 event?
All eyes are on Nintendo this year. After the 3DS had a somewhat lackluster debut it’s up to the Big N to show its fanbase what they have in store for them in regards to the new handheld. We know of the new Ocarina of Time and Kid Icarus, but little is still known about Mario’s debut on the 3DS. Will he have his trusty tanooki tail, or will new power-ups be given to him that will enhance the 3D experience? I expect more to be revealed during the Nintendo Press Conference concerning Mario’s next venture, as well as the upcoming Metal Gear Solid: Snake Eater remake and the just-announced Shinobi title. Hopefully there will be more in regards to the interesting puzzle game Crush 3D, as well as a playable demo for it.
Possible setup for the Project Cafe Controller
Of course we can’t mention Nintendo without having to talk about Project Cafe, the upcoming system due to be released in 2012. While that is not the actual name of the console itself it leads many to wonder the meaning behind its code word. Does it mean that it’ll have a special type of interactivity that has yet to be seen in the current-gen consoles? Perhaps the rumored touch screen on the controller can act as a sort of video chat section that players can partake in while online gaming, or the system itself could be used to create special connections with other players from all parts of the world. Maybe it can help you meet other players who play similar types of games, thereby making it easier for people to find other players to game out with them online. One thing’s for certain, though: Project Cafe will be featuring a more powerful system than either PS3 or Xbox 360, quite possibly meaning that it could very well run the new Unreal Engine at the highest degree.
Sony will be having to explain a lot on the subject of the whole PSN fiasco. The usual apologies will be on-hand, but little is known as to when the actual PSN Store will be up and running again. We know the freebies we’ll be getting once the Store is back up, but it’s getting to the point where it feels like Sony is teasing us with these goodies that we still cannot access. Still you can bet that Sony will be coming in with all gun blazing regarding such new titles as Uncharted 3, Resistance 3 and Twisted Metal. More will probably be revealed about the handheld PS NGP (which is already being rumored to be renamed the PS Vita), though one can only imagine how much battery power that system will suck up considering it will have PS3-styled graphics.
Uncharted 3: Drake’s Deception
Hot off the heels of the success with the Kinect, Microsoft has much to plan regarding their Xbox 360. From the next Gears of War game to the rumored Halo HD the company founded by Bill Gates has little to worry about at E3. The main focus will be on the Kinect, where gamers will be able to get hands-on with such titles as The Gunstringer, Once Upon a Monster and the new Star Wars title built specifically for the Kinect. There are some speculations going around that there will be a Gears of War game made to play for the Kinect, but just take it as a rumor with little to back it.
Besides the Big Three the other developers are planning to come out swinging at this year’s big gaming convention. Activision has already announced Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, though whether or not a playable demo will be there on-site remains to be seen. The folks at iD Software blew everyone away with its preview of Rage, and with the game set to be released later this year there’s no telling what sort of surprises they will have in store for the people at E3. EA is sure to have many eyes on their title Shadows of the Damned, a Grindhouse-styled action game from the crazed minds of Suda 51 (No More Heroes, Killer 7) and Shinji Mikami (Resident Evil) that is sure to be filled with gore and hilarity. Then we have SEGA, who are celebrating their beloved mascot Sonic the Hedgehog’s 20th birthday with a new title called Sonic Generations. Here players will be able to play as both the present-day Sonic and the Sonic that we grew up with in his 16-bit days.
Batman: Arkham City
No pressure on Warner Bros. Games for their title Batman: Arkham City, a game that keeps looking better the more that’s revealed. I wouldn’t be surprised to see this title get an M-rating, as it could finally bring the Dark Knight to the darkest depths we’ve always wanted to see him go. Irrational Games is ready to show off Bioshock: Infinite, a prequel to the popular series set in a gorgeous steampunk world. Square-Enix might be able to put itself out of the hole they dug themselves into thanks to the upcoming Deus Ex: Human Revolution, a prequel to the original title that will show the times before nanotechnology and focus more on biomechanical augmentations. Finally we have Techland’s Dead Island, a game whose trailer took the world by storm and placed it high above the pedestal. With a playable demo on the floor this year will the folks that brought us the great racing title nail’d be able to one-up Capcom and Valve in the zombie genre?
Whatever happens at E3, you can always bet that there will be at least one thing that will blow everyone’s expectations out of the water. This year, however, we can expect many waves of surprises from these and other developers at the Electronic Entertainment Expo. Tune in next week as we and the ElectricSistaHood will be covering the event in its entirety, as well as a few other hidden gems.
May 31, 2011Comments Off on Episode XCVII: Horton Comes To Life
Can Blueonic go one episode without dropping the f-bomb? He tries…
This week the B3 crew go off nostalgically regarding old commercials, pizza and POGs, and King Baby Duck and Anvil share their thoughts on the new Fucked Up album David Comes To Life. Plus Anvil introduces an up-and-coming band from the local area called Scare Don’t Fear. The Bastards show their excitement regarding the Bruins entering the Stanley Cup Finals, and Mr. Cuse reports on the now-first place Red Sox and NBA Finals. Finally everyone gives their two cents on what to expect at this year’s E3.
